24 April 2009

Did you think that Pakistan's government negotiating a deal with the Taliban to allow for Sharia law in exchange for "peace" in the Swat Valley was a good idea? Me neither. Despite the government telling the international media that all is well, Al-Jazeera English has footage of Buner being occupied by the Taliban (southeast of Swat and about 100km from Islamabad, map is here):

More troubling news from The Long War Journal is that the Taliban are continuing their march onward to Islamabad and areas which have nuclear facilities:

The Taliban advance on Mansehra and Haripur takes place at the same time they are moving on the districts of Swabi, Mardan, and Malakand. The takeover of these five districts would essentially cement the Taliban's control of the province.

The Taliban takeover of Haripur would put the Taliban on the doorstep of Islamabad and would also put two major nuclear facilities at risk.

Haripur borders the Margala Hills, a region in the Islamabad Capital Territory. Haripur also borders the Punjab districts of Attock and Rawalpindi.

Attock hosts two major nuclear facilities in Pakistan: the Wah Cantonment Ordnance Complex and the Kamra (Minhas) Airbase. The Wah Cantonment Ordnance Complex host three sites where nuclear weapons and components are stored and assembled and aircraft and missiles are modified for use in nuclear attacks. The nearby Kamra Airbase is thought to host attack aircraft capable of delivering nuclear weapons.

Pakistan's military has been dispatched after some justifiable hand-wringing by SECSTATE Hillary Clinton. But, seeing how Pakistan's military advances against the Taliban have a history of being a dog-and-pony show to get more aid from us, it might be time to start shitting your pants.

3
comments:

Lemme see: get under your desks, keep your knees apart, bend over between them as far as you can and kiss your ass goo'bye. Yep, that's it.Oh, and take her highness with you. I wonder if Hillary will break down and cry over this event, too? Heey, The One, you got a big, BIG problem here.

Who is This Clown?

Nixon is a former Navy guy who did a couple of deployments at sea and spent a year in Iraq. He enjoys reading and writing about the strange intersection between war, politics, and the media. He enjoys being an ex-pat and NGO employee in Bangkok for the time being.